The Fourth Degree

On Feburuary 22, 1900, the first Fourth Degree exemplification or degree ceremony was held in New York City. The Fourth Degree imparts a lesson on the virtue of patriotism. Its main purpose is to foster the spirit of patriotism in the members and the community at large. Today, there are some 300,000 Fourth Degree Knights out of the total 1.6 million member Knights of Columbus.

Any Fourth Degree Knight may become part of the assembly's color guard. The members are easily recognized by there attire of a tuxedo, feathered hat (chapeau), cape and Sword. These members regularly take part in the civic events such as parades and wreath laying funcitions, and also various ecclesial functions at Catholic Churches.

Fourth Degree Emblem

The triad emblem of the Fourth Degree features the dove, the cross and the globe. The dove, classic symbol of the Holy Spirit and peace, is shown hovering over the orb of the Earth (globe). Both are mounted on a variation of the Crusader's cross, which was found on the tunics and capes of the Crusading knights who battled to regain the Holy Land from the pagans.

Spiritually, the sacred symbols on the emblem typify the union of the Three Divine Persons in one Godhead, the most Blessed Trinity.

• The Globe -- God the Father, Creator of the Universe.
• The Cross -- God the Son, Redeemer of Mankind.
• The Dove -- God the Holy Spirit, Sanctifier of Humanity.

The colors of the symbols are:

• A blue globe with the land of the Western Hemisphere in white.
• A red cross with gold borders and gold knobs at the end of the points forming the ends of the arms of the cross, also known as the Isabella cross.
• A white dove.

Red, white and blue are the colors of the flag of the country in which the Knights originated. They are used to stress patriotism, the basic principle of the Fourth Degree.

Local Assemblies

Fr. Charles J. Watters Assembly #2688

Lanier Assembly #2844